This invention relates in general to certain new and useful improvements in doll heads providing nodding movement and a turning movement to signify respective "yes" and "no" answers on a random basis, and, more particularly, to movable doll heads of the type stated which provide nodding and turning movements on a random basis through an independently actuable camming mechanism.
Doll heads having two randomly selected movements are known in the art, as for example, one such doll head is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 3,456,950. These doll heads are useful play devices, primarily for children, since they can provide yes and no responsive movements on a random basis, and can be used either alone, as a type of fortune-telling device, or in conjunction with the playing of different types of games in which yes and no decisions are made.
It can be appreciated that the value of this type of doll head to children would be depreciated if the selection was made on any other than a random basis, since one response would be provided more often than the other of the responses. In addition to the above, it can be observed that this form of device could also find use as an "adult's toy", as for example, a so-called "executive" decision maker.
One of the primary problems with doll heads providing randomly selected responses of this type is that in order to obtain true random selection of a response, the device is usually complicated in its structure and, hence, fairly costly to manufacture. Moreover, and also due to the necessity of obtaining true randomness of a response, the device had to be constructed in such manner as to withstand use for a considerable period of time and still maintain the possibility of providing random response. The devices of the prior art were deficient in these respects since they were unduly complicated and also, after a period of time, were not capable of providing true random responses.
The present invention obviates these and other problems in the provision of a device having a movable doll's head which is capable of providing a nodding movement signifying a "yes" answer and a turning, or so-called "shaking" movement, which signifies a "no" answer. The device is operable by means of an actuating element, such as a card, which is inserted in the device for initiating the response of the doll's head. The random movement is created by a camming wheel which operates in conjunction with a latch, the latter controlling either of the movements. The camming wheel is freely rotated such that the high cam surfaces and low cam surfaces will determine the position of the latch and, hence, the movement of the doll head.